This graphic from @invisibae.bsky.social puts into perspective the Orioles’ poor run of first-round pitching since 1991. Only three teams have generated less WAR from first rounders, and one of them didn’t begin as a team until 1998. Another, the Braves, built one of the best rotations via trade

Since 1991, the year after Baltimore drafted Mike Mussina, the Orioles have taken 20 first-round pitchers. They’ve generated 19.9 WAR combined when pitching for the Orioles — 27th out of 30 MLB teams. From @invisibae.bsky.social and me, the long run of bad luck: www.thebanner.com/sports/oriol...

By @lizbowie.bsky.social, @invisibae.bsky.social and @ajv.bsky.social: School buses for every Baltimore student seemed impossible — until now. (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

NEW: Thousands of Baltimore students can’t get to school on time because of unreliable transit. The city's school choice system complicates creating a yellow bus network for all. A new plan proves it can be done. w/ @lizbowie.bsky.social & @ajv.bsky.social www.thebanner.com/education/k-...

Baltimore City is offering up to $5,000 over two months to help essential federal workers and families on SNAP with child care costs. But there are already hundreds of families in line. Here's how you can join them: www.thebanner.com/education/ea...

State school board says Harford County’s book ban shouldn’t have happened

Fantastic and deep reporting in @thebaltimorebanner.com today from @conarck.bsky.social and @invisibae.bsky.social:

New investigation w/ @invisibae.bsky.social: Baltimore County has the worst racial disparities in traffic stops throughout Maryland. Officers accused of profiling are quickly exonerated despite issuing 70-89% of their tickets to Black drivers. Read more: www.thebanner.com/community/cr...

Had fun thinking out loud about the Baltimore harbor's huge, maybe historic? pistachio tide with Lindsay Smith Rogers at Johns Hopkins. A year ago, Lindsay did a deep dive into Baltimore's progress toward a swimmable harbor. Things have felt different the last few weeks...

Do you ever get so overwhelmed at work you need to take a walk to clear your head? It happens to kids, too, which is why they should go outside, play and learn naturally from the world around them. Click for the cute pictures, keep reading for the brain science www.thebanner.com/education/ea...

I had such an incredible time (🥁) visiting the Renaissance Festival and talking with vendors there for this story. The Maryland Renn Fest is a true institution, and one of the most popular festivals like it in the country. It's also, as I found out, one of the most desirable for vendors.

His Costa Rica era: Brandon Chasen consulting, teaching surf lessons. (w/ @invisibae.bsky.social) (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

“This is very much an all-hands-on-deck sort of battlefield triage,” Earl Stoddard, the county’s assistant chief administrative officer, said of cuts to federal grant programs www.thebanner.com/politics-pow...

Can a video game help solve public transit in Baltimore? Danny Zawodny and @invisibae.bsky.social report. (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

HAPPY SUBWAY BUILDER DAY We have spent the week playing with the game that has captured transit nerds' hearts. We spoke with Colin Miller, the game's creator, about why he built the game and how it can help us dream about better transit in Baltimore. www.thebanner.com/community/tr...

NEW: A few weeks ago, @muckrock.com shared the Brady list for Baltimore County. Scanning it, I noticed the police chief was on there. I then spent weeks trying to figure out why. But no one — not the state's attorney, nor the police department — is explaining it. www.thebanner.com/community/cr...

By @juliemore19.bsky.social: There’s a ghost town buried under Loch Raven. (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

NEW INVESTIGATION: Investors have spent years falling in love with the 'debt service coverage ratio' loan. The loans have allowed access to vast sums with few conditions, and now make up 40% of mortgage dollars in Baltimore. Now they're going bad. (Story below ⬇️)

The child care scholarship is the main way Maryland families get help with child care. Since many can't afford it otherwise, day cares and preschools rely on vouchers to fill spots. So what happens when the program gets frozen - and doesn't come back when predicted? www.thebanner.com/education/ea...

New w/ @elliew0lfe.bsky.social: : The Trump administration will begin to charge $100k each for visas that UMD and Hopkins use to hire researchers, scientists and professors. Among the affected? A Ukrainian researcher who may be forced to go home. “I am terrified" www.thebanner.com/education/hi...

It's been over five years since the onset of COVID-19, which means the babies born into the pandemic are off to pre-K 4 and kindergarten. How exactly can teachers support these kiddos, who spent their earliest years in isolation? I dug into it: www.thebanner.com/education/ea...

NEW: The Trump administration is proposing cutting all funding for TRIO, a set of programs that helps low-income, first-generation students attend college. More than 12,000 Marylanders relied on the program last year. Here’s the potential impact: www.thebanner.com/education/hi...

IT'S CENSUS DAY at @thebaltimorebanner.com! The release of new 1-year ACS data told us a lot about the changing demographics and living experiences of counties across the country. Here's what we learned about Maryland:

Locust Point residents have had to live all summer with a constant hum, about the volume of a vacuum cleaner. How does their neighborhood compare to the loudest places in Baltimore? We took to the streets (with a mic!) to find out! www.thebanner.com/community/cl...

Baltimore real estate developer Brandon Chasen reports owing more than $71M. (w/ @halliemiller.bsky.social and @invisibae.bsky.social) (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

Head Start, the child tax credit, extra English help: These are all things undocumented and kids in mixed-status families stand to lose under the 2nd Trump admin. Anti-immigrant rhetoric & increased deportations are eating away at kids' mental health www.thebaltimorebanner.com/education/ea...

ICYMI From last night: Prominent Baltimore developer Brandon Chasen has agreed to enter into chapter 7 bankruptcy. Story 👇🏾

NEW: Baltimore developer Brandon Chasen has agreed enter bankruptcy. In a statement to @thebaltimorebanner.com, his lawyer said Chasen would learn from "painful and profound" lessons. w/ @dylansegelbaum.bsky.social & @halliemiller.bsky.social www.thebaltimorebanner.com/economy/grow...

The largest cuts to SNAP & Medicaid in U.S. history don't explicitly target kids - but they're likely to feel the pain when the adults who care for them lose benefits. Here's what social services experts are most worried about www.thebaltimorebanner.com/education/ea...

Every McLaren supercar sold in the U.S. comes through the Port of Baltimore. Soon, they will be processed at a McLaren-specific facility at Tradepoint Atlantic, as opposed to within a public terminal. (Also: I test drove one today, maxing out at 25 mph.) www.thebaltimorebanner.com/economy/mcla...

Find something old and interesting tucked away in a Baltimore building? Reach out to @jasminevaughnhall.bsky.social, who has another fun story about hidden treasurers out now: www.thebaltimorebanner.com/culture/arts...

John Harbaugh had an “amazing” experience at the White House. But if he had taken some time to think about what it meant to have a photo op with a president that bullies his home state, he would see why folks are disappointed in that decision: www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/raven...

A fitting companion piece to the column today:

NEW: The Trump administrations attempts to dismantle large parts of the federal workforce are starting to show up in the data. In June, Maryland lost more federal jobs than any state in the country — the most in nearly three decades.‬⁩ www.thebaltimorebanner.com/economy/ripp...

NEW: Research proves empirical what @lizbowie.bsky.social and I heard from many Baltimore City students: Long and complicated commutes on public transit limit their options even in Baltimore's universal school choice system. We spoke with the researchers. www.thebaltimorebanner.com/education/k-...

By @emilyopilo.bsky.social, @justinfenton.bsky.social and @invisibae.bsky.social: Scott Plank’s pitch to move Foxtrot’s base seemed like a long shot. Then state money appeared. (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

Long bus rides limit students’ school choices, Hopkins study finds, @lizbowie.bsky.social and @invisibae.bsky.social report. (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

At least 9 people have died from heat-related illness this year in Maryland so far — more than the entirety of some recent past summers. 27 died of heat in Maryland in 2024 — but only 4 by this point in the summer.

It’s not just late buses: Baltimore kids face serious safety risks, @lizbowie.bsky.social and @invisibae.bsky.social report. (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

NEW: Baltimore students told about their experiences with violence and harassment on the way to school in the state's only district without yellow bus service for middle and high schoolers. @lizbowie.bsky.social and I on what students are facing every day www.thebaltimorebanner.com/education/k-...

New: When Baltimore residents surrounded an ICE agent's vehicle after he arrested two members of their community, he called 911. Baltimore Police, who are by policy prohibited from immigration enforcement, cleared his way. Was it their "duty" or a "test?" www.thebaltimorebanner.com/community/cr...

Want to build a house? Renovate your store? You're going to need a building permit. This year Baltimore has been worse at approving new ones than in any since at least 2015. @halliemiller.bsky.social , @emilyopilo.bsky.social and me on the new process. www.thebaltimorebanner.com/politics-pow...

Baltimore officials said the revamped permit system would simplify and even accelerate the arduous process. So far, the promised overhaul has backfired, stalling development projects big and small (w/ @halliemiller.bsky.social & @invisibae.bsky.social) www.thebaltimorebanner.com/politics-pow...

Hyattsville, MD's City Council will vote this afternoon on whether to pay $6.5 million to expand its biggest park. Some fear the city is about the overpay by millions and bail out a failed development, with the state subsidizing more than half the cost: www.thebaltimorebanner.com/community/cl...

At 11, she’s turned heartbreak into hope on the National Spelling Bee stage Read the story by @kris10griffith.bsky.social on the @thebaltimorebanner.com ---> tinyurl.com/2rj9mrb5

The losing streak is over, but the Orioles have a long way to go to save their season. Making the postseason would require something no team since integration has ever done. by @danielleallentuck.bsky.social & I www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/oriol...

cat cafe!!!!!!!!!!!! For @thebaltimorebanner.com: www.thebaltimorebanner.com/culture/food...

“Even though she’s got aches and pains, she still gets to look beautiful for one more day.” Once, they owned Pimlico. On Saturday, the De Francis family, friends and longtime employees grappled with saying goodbye to the track they’ve known so well. www.thebaltimorebanner.com/sports/horse...

Groundbreaking audit of Md. police-custody deaths has major implications: -It "validates concerns" of biased death investigations -Dozens of deaths will be reexamined -Nail in the coffin for "excited delirium" -It all started with the George Floyd trial www.thebaltimorebanner.com/community/cr...